Complex Legal Legacies
The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, Scientific Study, and Kennewick Man
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2591636 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Susan B Bruning (Southern Methodist University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2006 |
| Volume | 71 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 501-521 |
| Publication date | 2006-07-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | American Antiquity (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0002-7316 • E-ISSN: 2325-5064 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.2307/40035362 |
| OpenAlex | W4233445329 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 15 |
Debates over disposition options for an inadvertently discovered set of early Holocene human remains known as Kennewick Man have fueled discussions about the scientific, cultural, and ethical implications of the anthropological study of human remains. A high-profile lawsuit over Kennewick Man has led to the most extensive judicial analysis to date of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the primary law affecting access to, and the ultimate disposition of, ancient human remains found in the United States. However, despite years of litigation, some key questions remain unanswered. The judicial decisions in Kennewick address important questions about determining Native American status and assessing cultural affiliation under the law. However, the court opinions fail to address the role of scientific study within NAGPRA's confines. This article examines NAGPRA and concludes that two provisions in the law expressly permit the scientific study of human remains if certain conditions are met. Significantly, Kennewick Man might have qualified for study under NAGPRA even if found to be Native American and culturally affiliated with the claimant tribes, which would have enabled study to proceed from the outset while the parties debated the issues of Native American status and potential cultural affiliation
Criminology · Ethnology · Lawsuit · Native american · Plaintiff · Political science · Repatriation · Sociology · Archaeological Research and Protection · Forensic and Genetic Research · Forensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology Studies · Law
Kennewick Man Case
Stories from below
Vandalised and Looted, Rock-Cut Tombs of the Roman and Byzantine Periods
Attitudes and uses of archival materials among science-based anthropologists
Myth of the Anasazi
Using Ethnographic Methods to Articulate Community-Based Conceptions of Cultural Heritage Management
A century of paleopathology
The Work of Repatriation in Indian Country
Voicing the Bones
The fusion of law and ethics in cultural heritage management
Nagpra After Two Decades
Thinking About a Public and Multidisciplinary Archaeology
Kennewick Man
Controversy and Conflict
It was maendeleo that removed them
| Unique citing works | 15 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,88 |
| Citation span | 2009 - 2023 (15) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 15 |